Reviewing Your Life-Work Balance

As we work our way towards spring, it’s a good time to look at spring-cleaning in our lives. We hear from people at all levels of business that they feel that one of their biggest personal challenges is maintaining a balance between work and home life that works for everyone.
The reality is that people will not find a balance that works for everyone, and letting go of that unrealistic objective is a huge step towards defining a balance for the person that really matter in the life balance question – you.

People worry that they aren’t giving enough time, energy and commitment to work, or to home, or to both because of the demands made upon them by others, or because they simply are not organised enough to fit everything in. This isn’t a problem restricted to the adult workforce – schools are full of students trying to balance academic exams, friendships, pocket money jobs, music grades, sports commitments and family time.

After accepting that not everyone will be happy with your choices, the hard work of creating a sustainable balance begins – deciding on what’s really important to you. This sounds easy, but can prove difficult as deciding what’s truly important in your life also means making decisions about what isn’t as important, and making the choice to let some things go. Creating balance in your life isn’t about making room for everything and everybody.
This month the Canadian government asked employees in one department not to use their BlackBerry smartphones between 7pm and 7am. The devices have become known as ‘Crackberries’ as some people find it so hard to live without them for even an hour. Whilst for some the 7-7 rule may take pressure off them and give them back the headspace they need in the evenings to devote to other activities, for others, such a rule feels like an intrusion into how they like to clear their mind of work worries by planning each day the evening before.
Gaining a balance that works for you isn’t about top tips for time and device management, it’s about integrating your priorities. Take some time to think about what they are, then take action for a more integrated life.

If your organisation would like to support its employees in developing their own healthy balance, contact us.